Ronald Katter represents victims' families, demands enforcement and accountability

You may begin.

Good afternoon, Speaker Manin, Chair Shulman, and members of the Committee on Health.

My name is Ronald Catter.

I am here today to give a voice to Upper East Side residents who were poisoned

by Legionnaire's disease, an invisible recurring menace, and to hold negligent cooling tower owners and the Department of Health accountable for the lives they failed to protect.

I represent many Upper East Side residents who were sickened, who suffered, and who now live with the long-term consequences of this disease, as well as the families of loved ones who's...

Loved ones were tragically and fatally succumbed to the illness.

My clients'lives have been permanently shattered by this summer's preventable Legionnaire disease outbreak, leaving them with severe, lifelong trauma.

Behind the Department of Health's clinical statistics, with its reported 94 cases and 11 deaths, are real New Yorkers whose futures were stolen.

I represent Ida Goldstein, the widow and sole survivor of her late husband, Robert, a proud Air Force veteran and retired security consultant.

Their vibrant 50-year marriage and

and future plans were abruptly stolen, leaving Ida to suffer profound loss and injury all alone.

I also represent the loved ones of retired Judge Charles Thomas.

Judge Thomas spent his life serving the public and intended to fully enjoy his retirement

surrounded by his family, friends, and music.

Instead, his song was cut short by a toxic mist.

This tragedy stems from a profound shared responsibility.

First, the cooling tower owners failed fundamentally.

They are legally required to properly inspect and maintain their cooling towers.

Thank you.

Your time has expired.

So they could not just summarize, sir.

Instead, they allowed their machinery to broadcast.

Can you summarize so we have to move on?

Sure.

The health department shares equal culpability.

They failed to ensure towers were registered, failed to conduct annual inspections, and were severely understaffed when the outbreak hit.

And this is my conclusion.

After the 2015 Bronx Opera House outbreak, the city enacted cooling tower regulations.

After last year's Central Harlem outbreak, it made them stricter.

How can laws that are not enforced remedy this dire problem?

A Department of Health that cannot cure a recurring annual plague is failing to protect the very lives of its citizens.

We demand strict enforcement.

and immediate accountability.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity.

Thank you.

And you can submit the length of testimony to us at testimony at council.nyc.gov.

Okay?

Thank you.

Next is Dimitri Daskalakis.